Nora Goes Off Script

Nora takes her morning coffee out to watch the sunrise and is surprised to see Leo asleep on the porch swing. He has helped himself to Nora’s tequila, and the half-empty bottle is beside him. She thinks about taking a picture to show her friends but decides against it. He looks defenseless asleep on the porch, and Nora regrets for a moment that she has “subjected him to [her] sad story” (22); later, he will have to film her movie’s breakup scene.

Nora thinks for a while about her breakup with Ben, how he just stopped loving her one day and left because he “needed a bigger life” (22). She imagines the scene reenacted with Leo and Naomi and hopes the audience will understand that she gave Ben everything while he “added exactly zero value to the marriage” (22). Instead of waking Leo up to show him the sunrise, Nora lets him sleep and goes back inside.

Later in the afternoon, Nora gets a message from Weezie, Leo’s assistant, that she’s wanted on set. She makes her way out to the tea house, where she is accosted by Naomi, who feels her character should react like a “normal woman” by crying or screaming when her husband leaves. Nora explains that she accepts the breakup because “he’s taking nothing” (24); she isn’t a victim because she’s no longer emotionally invested in Ben. The revelation makes Naomi cry, and the filming goes on.

Nora thinks about how she intended to write another silly movie for TRC when she began The Tea House. The two characters meet just like she and Ben did. When the two were in college, the charismatic and handsome young Ben saw Nora laughing and talking with Jay Levinthal. He introduced himself, and the two fell in love. Later, however, Nora learned that Ben hated Jay, and Ben had just wanted to steal Nora away from him.

When Nora brings her kids home from school, Leo is on the porch again, drinking an old bottle of Ben’s scotch. Bernadette tells him he can see the sunrise from the porch, but Leo is leaving that night and will miss it. Nora is relieved that the film crew is on their way out. She bakes a chicken, helps the kids with their homework, and thinks about returning to “the simplicity of writing for TRC” (28). The shoot finishes, and the actors and crew head out, leaving the Hamilton family for the rest of their evening.

Nora’s evening routine is interrupted by a phone call from Weezie: Leo went missing somewhere between Nora’s house and his New York City penthouse apartment. Worried but also annoyed with his arrogance, Nora looks for Leo in the tea house but can’t find him. She promises Weezie that she will text if he turns up and proceeds to put the kids to bed. Nora is relieved to have her house to herself again, and she falls asleep, “relishing in having reclaimed [her] domain” (32).

The next morning, Nora is awoken by the sunrise. When she goes downstairs, she is alarmed to find Leo on her porch again. He eyes her legs through her nightgown, and Nora hurries to cover them with a blanket, scolding him for worrying so many people. Nora is determined to keep her day on track despite Leo’s interruption. She makes breakfast, takes Bernadette and Arthur to school, and goes for her morning run.

After the run, Nora expects Leo to have left for the city but finds him doing her crossword puzzle in her kitchen. He asks if he can stay in the tea house for a week, offering $1,000 a night and insisting that he needs some time away from the city. Nora tries to ignore him and begins her writing ritual, making tea, lighting a candle, and putting her hair up with a sharpened pencil. However, she finds it difficult to concentrate with “the Sexiest Man Alive” (41) asleep on the daybed behind her.

Nora finally agrees to Leo’s proposition, with the caveat that he vacates the tea house from 10:00am until 2:00pm so she can maintain her “loose schedule” and keep writing. She accepts that she won’t get anything done this afternoon, however, and decides to go to the grocery store. Leo asks if he can accompany her, and Nora self-consciously leads him through her musty garage and into her dirty car. She debates going to Whole Foods instead of the more affordable Stop n’ Save but decides to give Leo the full experience of being a normal person.

At Stop n’ Save, Leo is amazed by the self-checkout gun and listens attentively as Nora explains what she buys on which day of the week. They run into a woman Nora knows, who is amazed to see her shopping with Leo Vance.

By the time Nora picks up the kids, word has spread that Leo Vance is staying at her house. The other moms are eager for the gossip, and Arthur and Bernadette’s classmates have been asking questions. Bernadette is ecstatic that the actor is staying a whole week, but Arthur stays quiet when he hears the news.

Over the next few days, the family’s life continues more or less normally. On Friday, Leo has dinner with them, but on Saturday, he is asleep in the tea house when they return from their many sporting events and activities. By Sunday, Arthur is getting nervous about his first rehearsal for the school play, Oliver Twist, in which he’ll play Fagin. He snaps at Nora as she tries to run lines with him, and the two are interrupted by Leo in the middle of rehearsing one of the songs. Leo talks to Arthur about the play and offers to run lines with him on the condition that Arthur promises not to become a professional actor, a path Leo says is “empty” (59). Leo takes Arthur into the living room to rehearse, leaving Nora to do the dishes and remark that she can’t remember when another adult has shared parental responsibilities with her.

On Monday morning, Leo is up first and has already made coffee by the time Nora comes downstairs. Although she intended to write, Nora takes Leo into town to give him a walking tour of Laurel Ridge. They visit a small grocery store, where Leo is thrilled to buy a baguette, cheese, salami, and an assortment of fruit and jam. Next, the two visit a houseware store, where Leo examines everything before picking out some things for Nora’s house, including a set of sheets and new towels. He tells her that other people do his shopping in New York and that it’s a nice change to make his own choices.

Upon leaving the houseware store, Leo and Nora visit the bookstore and a hardware store. Nora thinks about how much she enjoys being seen out and about with Leo. In her small town, everyone knows about her and Ben; they all know that “he sort of used [her] up and tossed [her] aside” (64), and it feels good to be able to show off her shiny new companion.

After dinner, Wheel of Fortune, and putting the kids to bed, Leo and Nora take a glass of wine to the sunroom. They talk about Nora’s work, and she tells Leo there isn’t much inspiration required; writing for The Romance Chanel is “more like math” (66). As a demonstration, Nora asks Leo for a career, a gender, and a location, and she makes up a story to illustrate the formula. She says they are always more or less the same, although she changes the specific details. However, the most important part is that the guy or girl always comes back in the end. The ending of The Tea Room hangs over them until Leo points out that the guy never returns. Nora quickly agrees and goes to bed.

The next morning, Leo isn’t waiting for sunrise, and Nora is worried. She realizes she is “getting used to him” (69) and likes having him around. She thinks about how different Leo is from Ben, a man who “took up a lot of space” (69), demanding all of Nora’s attention and contributing nothing.

Nora grew up with her sister, Penny, in Chesterville, Connecticut, a town clearly divided along class lines. On one side, up the hill, wealthy professional families lived. On the other side, down the hill, were the poorer tradespeople. Nora’s father cleaned pools, and her family lived down the hill. For Nora, this was fine. She was content with her life and enjoyed making fun of the pretentious kids they referred to as “hilltoppers” (70). Penny, however, dreamed of a life on the hill and emulated her wealthier peers in every way she could. Eventually, she won them over and was accepted into their fold. Through college and after, Penny lived in the glamorous world of wealth and prestige.

Nora was impressed by Ben’s lifestyle when she started dating him. Even though she never aspired to high society herself, she was struck by Ben’s confidence and entitlement. The couple moved to New York together after college, where Nora worked in publishing, and Ben embarked on the first in a long string of failed schemes and ideas. Unable to find investors for his projects and unwilling to work for someone else, Ben ran up credit while Nora supported the family. Unable to comprehend a life that requires regular work, he “rail[ed] against the injustice of having no passive income” (72).

The night Ben told her he was leaving, she describes feeling “a profound relief” (73). Her only regret was knowing that Ben’s absence would hurt the children. However, without him, the house felt more open, and Nora felt “stronger” and “free” (75). On the porch, Nora reflects that she likes how Leo occupies her house, and she is even starting to think that he likes her, too. But his stay is almost up, and Nora convinces herself that she must face reality.

Just then, Leo bursts onto the porch, worried about missing the sunrise. As they watch it together, he asks her what she was thinking about, and she tells him that she was considering how much better her life is without Ben.

Later that day, Leo goes to town by himself, leaving Nora to write. They trade off time in the tea house when Leo comes in for a nap, and Nora goes back inside to find that a case of French wine and a box of cupcakes have been delivered from the city. Arthur and Bernadette are delighted with the cupcakes, and Nora takes Bernadette to dance class while Arthur stays home to run lines with Leo.

Waiting for her daughter, Nora worries about how much she has been thinking about Leo. She’s started washing her hair daily, and she listens for his feet on the stairs when he goes to the bathroom at night. However, she assures the other moms that nothing is going on between her and Leo, telling them that he looks at her like she’s “some suburban mom who maybe needs a makeover” (82). Inside, though, Nora isn’t convinced this is true. When she gets home, Arthur has successfully run all his lines without the script, and they all settle in to watch one of Nora’s “happy movies” (82).

The next morning, Leo and Nora watch the sunrise together. It’s Leo’s last day, and Nora asks him if he feels better. He tells her it’s hard for him to have normal relationships because of his work and that he has missed being included in a family unit. Nora considers asking him to stay longer but decides against it, worried that more time just means she and her kids will get more attached to him.

After finishing writing for the day, Nora takes an afternoon nap in the tearoom. She is alarmed when Leo wakes her up with a cup of tea. She is distracted by his closeness, but then he starts talking about Arthur, worrying about whether or not he is prepared for his first rehearsal, which brings Nora back to reality. He offers to help Nora watch the kids backstage, and they set off for the school. Mrs. Sasaki is thrilled by Leo’s presence, and soon he is sitting next to her, offering directorial advice.

Upon returning from the rehearsal, Nora, Leo, and the kids find pizzas that Leo ordered from the city waiting for them. They eat together, reveling in the success of the rehearsal. Arthur, in particular, is different, appearing more confident and self-assured. Bernadette mentions that it is Leo’s last night, and he tells them he has been offered a position as co-director of Oliver Twist. He will be staying for three more weeks, until opening night.

Nora is relieved that Leo is staying, but she knows that his departure is still inevitable and will be worse if he stays longer. They share a last glass of wine before bed, and Leo contemplates quitting acting. He also confesses that he secretly enjoys The Romance Channel’s silly movies and has seen several of Nora’s.